Effect of hot stretching graphitization on the structure and mechanical properties of rayon-based carbon fibers

The influence of hot stretching graphitization on the structure and mechanical properties of rayon-based carbon fibers was studied. It was observed that the Young’s modulus of the treated fibers increased with heat treatment temperature (HTT) and hot stretching stress, to 173 GPa by 158.2 % through hot stretching at 2700 °C under stress of 270 MPa compared to that of the as-received carbon fiber. Meanwhile the tensile strength increased to 1.75 GPa by 73.3 % through hot stretching at 2700 °C under 252 MPa. The field emission scanning electron images showed markedly increased roughness on the external surface and bigger and more compacted granular morphologies on the cross section of the treated fibers with increasing HTT. The preferred orientation of graphitic layers was improved by hot stretching, and the higher the HTT, the stronger the effectiveness of the hot stretching. The crystallite sizes grew and the crystallite interlayer spacing decreased obviously with increasing HTT but changed just slightly with increasing stretching stress. The analysis based on uniform stress model and shear fracture theory proposed that the improvement of tensile strength and Young’s modulus for rayon-based carbon fiber was mainly due to the increased preferred orientation and nearly unchanged shear modulus between planes with increasing HTT during hot stretching graphitization, which was much different from polyacrylonitrile-based carbon fibers.     

Fabrication and mechanical characterization of continuous carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic using a preform by three-dimensional printing and via hot-press molding

A new 3D printer equipped novel nozzle structure for continuous carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastics (C-CFRTP) was developed and the suitable printing conditions were studied. C-CFRTP filament and additional matrix resin were supplied independently using each extruder, which is useful for variety printing and precise form control in 3D printing. To measure the mechanical properties, specimens for tensile strength testing were fabricated using C-CFRTP filament (Vf:50%) without additional matrix resin. The experimental results indicate that the tensile strength and Young’s modulus were approximately 700 MPa and 53 GPa, respectively. The recrystallization effect through annealing after 3D printing yielded no drastic improvement. The mechanical properties were considerably improved by a hot-press treatment after 3D printing. The tensile strength and Young’s modulus increased to approximately 1400 MPa and approximately 90 GPa, respectively. These results suggest that one of the useful applications of C-CFRTP 3D printing technology is preforming of small parts in industrial products.     

Effect of sintering temperature and cooling rate on the morphology, mechanical behavior and apatite-forming ability of a novel nanostructured magnesium calcium silicate scaffold prepared by a freeze casting method

In this research, sol–gel-derived nanostructured calcium magnesium silicate (merwinite)-based scaffolds were fabricated by water-based freeze casting method. The effect of cooling rate and sintering temperature on pore sizes and mechanical characteristics of the scaffolds was studied. Microstructure and surface morphology of scaffolds were also observed by scanning electron microscopy before and after various time intervals of soaking in simulated body fluid. The results showed that increasing temperature at the constant rate led to increasing the parameters of volume and linear shrinkage, strength (σ), and Young’s modulus (E) but decreasing porosity. This increase was significant for strength and Young’s modulus. In addition, with the increase of rate at the constant temperature, the parameters of volume and linear shrinkage and also porosity decreased whereas strength and Young’s modulus increased significantly. According to the obtained mechanical results, the best mechanical properties were achieved when the scaffold was prepared at cooling rate and sintering temperature of 277.15°K/min and 1623.15°K, respectively (E = 0.048 GPa and σ = 2 MPa). These values were closer to the lower limit of the values for cancellous bone. The acellular in vitro bioactivity revealed that different apatite morphologies were formed on the surfaces for various periods of soaking time when the scaffolds prepared at the freezing temperature of 277.15°K/min and at the two different sintering temperatures. The favorable mechanical behavior of the porous constructs, coupled with the ability of forming apatite particles on the surface of scaffold, indicates the potential of the present freeze casting route for the production of porous scaffolds for bone tissue engineering.     

Fabrication of advanced “green” composites using potassium hydroxide (KOH) treated liquid crystalline (LC) cellulose fibers

Advanced green composites having excellent strength and stiffness were fabricated using liquid crystalline (LC) cellulose fibers and soy protein isolate (SPI) resin. Further, LC cellulose fibers were treated with potassium hydroxide (KOH) to improve their tensile strength and Young’s modulus by increase the crystallinity of cellulose. The improvements were significant when the treatment was carried out while keeping the fibers under tension. The Young’s modulus (stiffness) of the LC cellulose fibers increased by about 33 % from 47.8 to 63.7 GPa and the strength increased by about 18 % from 1483 MPa to 1749 MPa. X-ray diffraction (XRD) study of the LC cellulose fibers showed over 50 % increase in crystallinity after the KOH treatment. The mechanical properties of the LC cellulose fiber-reinforced composites were also high and improved further when the KOH treated fibers were used. With 65 % fiber volume it should be possible to obtain composites with strength above 1020 MPa and modulus of over 37 GPa, making them truly advanced green composites that could be used for structural applications.     

Optimising industrial hemp fibre for composites

The optimisation of New Zealand grown hemp fibre for inclusion in composites has been investigated. The optimum growing period was found to be 114 days, producing fibres with an average tensile strength of 857 MPa and a Young’s modulus of 58 GPa. An alkali treatment with 10 wt% NaOH solution at a maximum processing temperature of 160 °C with a hold time of 45 min was found to produce strong fibres with a low lignin content and good fibre separation. Although a good fit with the Weibull distribution function was obtained for single fibre strength, this did not allow for accurate scaling to strengths at different lengths. Alkali treated fibres, polypropylene and a maleated polypropylene (MAPP) coupling agent were compounded in a twin-screw extruder, and injection moulded into composite tensile test specimens. The strongest composite consisted of polypropylene with 40 wt% fibre and 3 wt% MAPP, and had a tensile strength of 47.2 MPa, and a Young’s modulus of 4.88 GPa.     

C60 and C70 pressure-and-temperature transformations into fullerene-related forms

A two-stage pressure-and-temperature treatment of the C₆₀ and C₇₀ fullerites was carried out. C₆₀ and C₇₀ molecules collapsed at the first-stage hot-isostatic-pressing (HIP; 220 MPa, argon) and transformed into some fullerene-related form in the 900–1750°C temperature range. These materials were used at the second stage of the high-pressure-high-temperature (HPHT; 7.7 GPa/1400°C) treatment to produce the bulk samples that had: a specific weight of about 2.0 g/cm³, 40/110 GPa Young modulus, 6.0/12.5 GPa, and elastic recovery above 81%. Transformations under the treatments were investigated with the X-ray and transmission electron microscopy techniques. The mechanism of the pressure-and-temperature transformations is discussed.     

Effect of heat treatment on mechanical properties of low alloy steel foams

Effect of heat treatment on compressive properties of low alloy steel foams (Fe–1.75 Ni–1.5 Cu–0.5 Mo–0.6 C) having porosities in the range of 47.4–71.5% with irregular pore shape, produced by the space holder-water leaching technique in powder metallurgy, was investigated. Low alloy steel powders were mixed with different amounts of space holder (carbamide), and then compacted at 200 MPa. Carbamide in the green compacts was removed by water leaching at room temperature. The green specimens were sintered at 1200 °C for 60 min in hydrogen atmosphere. Sintered compacts were heat treated by austenitizing at 850 °C for 30 min and then quenched at 70 °C in oil and tempered at 210 °C for 60 min. In this porosity range, compressive yield strengths of as-sintered and heat treated specimens were 28–122 MPa and 18–168 MPa, respectively. The resultant Young’s moduli of the as-sintered and heat treated specimens were 0.68–3.12 GPa and 0.47–3.47 GPa, respectively. The heat treatment enhanced the Young’s modulus and compressive yield strength of the foams having porosities in the range of 47.4–62.3%, as a consequence of matrix strengthening. However, the compressive yield stress and Young’s modulus of the heat treated foam having 71.5% porosity were lower than that of the as-sintered foam’s, as a result of cracks in the structure. The results were discussed in light of the structural findings.     

Werkstoffverhalten unter zügiger elastischer Beanspruchung

Material properties by continuous elastic straining Within the scope of a common research project of the steel and automotive industry, 20 sheet steels have been investigated to obtain input data for FE‐analysis. In detail, characteristical elastic, plastic and fatique values were determined by several testing institutes for a period of 3 years. Knowledge of dependency of Young’s modulus from temperature and orientation is important for spring back at the press shop and stiffness of parts for automotive. Young’s modulus was determined by tensile tests in delivered state, after prestraining, heat treatment at room temperature and –40 °C and 100 °C. Young’s modulus is dependent from the orientation to rolling direction and can be classified in groups. Young’s modulus of ferritic steels is decreased about 10 % by prestraining of 2 % but recovered after annealing at 170 °C. Temperature dependency well known from non destructive tests are confirmed.     

Influence of thermal conditions on the tensile properties of basalt fiber reinforced polypropylene–clay nanocomposites

In this paper, a comparative study on the tensile properties of clay reinforced polypropylene (PP) nanocomposites (PPCN) and chopped basalt fiber reinforced PP–clay nanocomposites (PPCN-B) is presented. PP matrix are filled with 1, 3 and 5 wt.% of nanoclays. The ultimate tensile strength, yield strength, Young’s modulus and toughness are measured at various temperature conditions. The thermal conditions are included the room temperature (RT), low temperature (LT) and high temperature (HT). The basal spacing of clay in the composites is measured by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Nanoscale morphology of the samples is observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Addition of nanoclay improves the yield strength and Young’s modulus of PPCN and PPCN-B; however, it reduces the ultimate tensile strength. Furthermore, the addition of chopped basalt fibers to PPCN improves the Young’s modulus of the composites. The Young’s modulus and the yield strength of both PPCN and PPCN-B are significantly high at LT (−196 °C), descend at RT (25 °C) and then low at HT (120 °C).     

Characterization of the viscoelastic behavior of bismaleimide resin before and after exposure to high temperatures

Creep and high strain rate mechanical properties, shrinkage strain, and thermal properties of a bismaleimide neat resin after exposure to a high temperature in air were evaluated and compared with the corresponding properties for a pristine resin. Under tension at a strain rate of 6×10^?4 s^?1, the Young’s modulus decreases and Poisson’s ratio increases with temperature, measured up to 310 °C. The tensile creep behavior was determined at stress levels of 12, 24, and 33 MPa at elevated temperatures. At each stress level, the creep compliance curves at different temperatures were shifted horizontally to form a master curve. These creep compliance master curves are nearly identical, indicating a linearly viscoelastic behavior up to 33 MPa. The bismaleimide resin was also exposed to air at other temperatures of 245, 260, and 280 °C for 1500 hours. After exposure to a high temperature, three regimes were observed in the resin through optical micrographs: an outer layer showing darker color, an interior that nearly maintained its original color, and a transition (or reacting) region in between. The average shrinkage on surface was determined as 3.4 % strain after 1500 hours of exposure to 260 °C in air. Compression at a high strain rate using a long split Hopkinson pressure bar shows that the bulk bismaleimide resin is rather insensitive to the exposure to a high temperature, exhibiting only a slight reduction in mechanical properties after 1500 hours of exposure to 245 °C. The uniaxial creep compliance of the neat resin was converted into the Young’s relaxation modulus, which was then used to calculate the Young’s modulus under tension at the strain rate and temperatures involved, and a good agreement was achieved between the calculated results and the experimental data, indicating that the rate-dependent Young’s modulus is the representation of viscoelastic properties.     

The Effect of Shear Mixing Speed and Time on the Mechanical Properties of GNP/Epoxy Composites

The aim of this study was to examine the effect of shear mixing speed and time on the mechanical properties of graphene nanoplatelet (GNP) composites. Shear mixing is cited in the literature as one method of making a good dispersion of nanofillers in a polymer that breaks down agglomerates into smaller particles and in the case of GNP can exfoliate layers of graphene. In this paper 0.1 to 5 wt% GNP was mixed with epoxy at different speeds and for different lengths of time. The composites were then cured and the tensile strength and Young’s modulus was measured. Optical microscopy was performed to examine the dispersion of the GNP in the epoxy. The results show that the shear mixing speed and time affect the size of agglomerates, which has an impact on the mechanical properties of the composite. At 3000 rpm and 2 h of mixing the average size of agglomerate was 26.3 μm (30 % reduction compared to that of 1000 rpm and 1 h duration), the tensile strength of epoxy was not affected by the addition of GNP, while a 12 % increase was recorded for the Young’s modulus. It is also found that functionalisation of the surface of the GNP improves the bond formed between the GNP and the resin that enhances its mechanical properties with no effect on the size of the agglomerates. Acetone was used to improve the GNP dispersion and found that shear mixing 5 wt% of GNP with acetone increases the Young’s modulus up to 3.02 from 2.6 GPa for the neat epoxy, an almost 14 % rise.     

Effects of VC additives on densification and elastic and mechanical properties of hot-pressed ZrB<Subscript>2</Subscript>–SiC composites

In this study, highly dense ZrB₂-20 vol% SiC composites with 3–10 wt% VC additives were prepared by hot-pressing at 1750 °C for 1 h under a pressure of 20 MPa in a vacuum. The densification behavior and elastic and mechanical properties of the obtained composites were examined, and the effect of the VC content on the densification and the properties is analyzed. The addition of VC promotes the activation of densification mechanism at a lower temperature and inhibits the growth of ZrB₂ and SiC grains during the sintering. In addition, the elastic moduli, hardness and fracture toughness that measured in the obtained composites are constant and independent of the VC content, with a shear modulus of ~ 220 GPa, Young’s modulus of ~ 500 GPa, hardness of ~ 20 GPa and fracture toughness of ~ 4.4 MPa m^1/2. On the other hand, the flexural strength of the composites decreased as the VC content increased from 3 to 7 wt% and then it increased with further increasing the VC content to 10 wt%, with strength values of 620–770 MPa.     

Effects of SWCNTs on mechanical and thermal performance of epoxy at elevated temperatures

A property which limits the breadth of application of thermoset polymers and their composites is their relatively low maximum operating temperatures. This work investigates the potential application of both functionalized single-walled carbon nanotubes (f-SWCNTs) based on negative charging, and unfunctionalized SWCNTs (u-SWCNTs) to increase the mechanical and thermal performance of a high-temperature aerospace-grade epoxy with a glass transition temperature of approximately 270 °C. Thermal and mechanical properties of the baseline epoxy and nanocomposites containing a low content of SWCNTs (0.2 % by weight) were characterized through thermogravimetric analyses, tensile tests, and dynamic mechanical analyses. Tensile tests were performed both at room temperature and at 80 °C. Further, room temperature tensile tests were performed on untreated and heat-treated specimens. The heat treatment was performed at 300 °C, slightly above the resin glass transition temperature. Results demonstrate that f-SWCNTs are effective in improving the mechanical and thermal performance of the epoxy. No significant improvement was observed for u-SWCNT nanocomposites. For the nanocomposite with f-SWCNTs, the ultimate tensile strength and strain to failure at room temperature (80 °C) increased by 20 % (8 %) and 71 % (77 %), respectively, as compared to the baseline epoxy. The f-SWCNT nanocomposite, unlike other examined materials, exhibited a stress–strain necking behavior at 80 °C, an indication of increased ductility. After heat treatment, these properties further improved relative to the neat epoxy (160 % increase in ultimate tensile strength and 270 % increase in strain to failure). This work suggests the potential to utilize f-SWCNTs based on negative charging to enhance high-temperature thermoset performance.     

Preparation and characterization of a novel willemite bioceramic

Willemite (Zn₂SiO₄) ceramics were prepared by sintering the willemite green compacts. The effects of sintering temperature on the linear shrinkage, porosity and mechanical strength of the ceramics were examined. With the sintering temperature increased, the linear shrinkage of the ceramics increased and the porosity decreased. When sintered at 1,300°C, willemite ceramics showed mechanical properties of the same order of magnitude as values for human cortical bone, as measured by bending strength (91.2 ± 4.2 MPa) and Young’s modulus (37.5 ± 1.5 GPa). In addition, the adhesion and proliferation of rabbit bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) on willemite ceramics was investigated. The results showed that the ceramics supported cell adhesion and stimulated the proliferation. All these findings suggest that willemite ceramics possess suitable mechanical properties and favorable biocompatibility and might be a promising biomaterial for bone implant applications.     

Consolidation of nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite powder

The effect of sintering temperature on the sinterability of synthesized nanocrystalline hydroxyapatite (HA) was investigated. The starting powder was synthesized via a novel wet chemical route. HA green compacts were prepared and sintered in atmospheric condition at various temperatures ranging from 900–1300°1C. The results revealed that the thermal stability of HA phase was not disrupted throughout the sintering regime employed. In general, the results showed that above 98% of theoretical density coupled with hardness of 7.21 GPa, fracture toughness of 1.17 MPa m^1/2 and Young’s modulus of above 110 GPa were obtained for HA sintered at temperature as low as 1050 1C. Although the Young’s modulus increased with increasing bulk density, the hardness and fracture toughness of the sintered material started to decline when the temperature was increased beyond 1000–1050 °C despite exhibiting high densities > 98% of theoretical value. The occurrence of this phenomenon is believed to be associated with a thermal-activated grain growth process.     

High-performance nanocomposite films: reinforced with chitosan nanofiber extracted from prawn shells

An optically transparent prawn shell with intact original shape and substantial morphological detail was developed in this study as well as the corresponding nanocomposite film. Chitosan nanofibers could be got through deacetylated reaction following a series of simple mechanical treatments under neutral condition. Polyethersulfone (PES) resin was used as matrix to prepare chitosan-nanocomposite film during the impregnated process. FE-SEM images showed that chitosan nanofiber were highly uniform and forming interweaved network structure, with the average wide mostly less than 30 nm. Compared with pure PES, light transmission of the obtained nanocomposite was 84.5 % with only 4.2 % transmission loss. Furthermore, the addition of chitosan nanofiber significantly improved the CTE of the neat PES to 16 ppm/K from room temperature to 140 °C with the fiber content was 60 wt%. Young’s modulus and tensile strength of the PES resin increased from 1.3 to 3.9 GPa and 39 to 91 MPa, respectively, which was attributed by the reinforcement effect of nanostructure chitosan fibers. These unique characteristics of the chitosan/PES nanocomposite would lead to a number of potential applications in some high-tech areas and are a promising move toward the environmental protection of marine-river-waste utilization.     

High‐Modulus Low‐Cost Carbon Fibers from Polyethylene Enabled by Boron Catalyzed Graphitization

Currently, carbon fibers (CFs) from the solution spinning, air oxidation, and carbonization of polyacrylonitrile impose a lower price limit of ≈$10 per lb, limiting the growth in industrial and automotive markets. Polyethylene is a promising precursor to enable a high‐volume industrial grade CF as it is low cost, melt spinnable and has high carbon content. However, sulfonated polyethylene (SPE)‐derived CFs have thus far fallen short of the 200 GPa tensile modulus threshold for industrial applicability. Here, a graphitization process is presented catalyzed by the addition of boron that produces carbon fiber with >400 GPa tensile modulus at 2400 °C. Wide angle X‐ray diffraction collected during carbonization reveals that the presence of boron reduces the onset of graphitization by nearly 400 °C, beginning around 1200 °C. The B‐doped SPE‐CFs herein attain 200 GPa tensile modulus and 2.4 GPa tensile strength at the practical carbonization temperature of 1800 °C.     

Continuous SiC-based model monofilaments with a low free carbon content: Part II From the pyrolysis of a novel copolymer precursor

Quasi stoichiometric model SiC monofilaments (C/Si atomic ratio ≈ 1.02) with still some free carbon (≈3 mol%) and residual oxygen have been produced from a novel copolymer precursor, itself prepared from methylphenyldichlorosilane and 2,4-dichloro-2,4-disilapentane. The continuous green fibre was melt spun at 230°C, cured by electron-beam irradiation, and pyrolysed under argon at temperatures, T_p, in the range 1000–1600°C. The fibre remained nanocrystalline at high temperature with the SiC grain size growing from 1.5 nm to 7.3 nm when T_p was raised from 1400°C to 1600°C. Its Young's modulus continuously increased as T_p was raised (with E=320 GPa for T_p=1400°C), whereas its tensile strength at room temperature underwent a maximum for T_p=1200°C (σ_R≈1850 MPa for L=10 mm and d≈20 μm). This revised version was published online in November 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

紧张热定型工艺对多壁碳纳米管/聚醚醚酮复合纤维结构和性能的影响

采用熔融共混纺丝工艺制备多壁碳纳米管(MWCNTs)质量分数分别为0.1%和0.5%的MWCNTs/PEEK(聚醚醚酮)复合纤维,研究了紧张热定型过程中热定型温度和降温速率对复合纤维结构和性能的影响。采用TEM、SEM、DSC、DMA、XRD和单纤维电子强力仪研究了复合纤维的形貌、结构和性能。结果表明:复合纤维的热定型温度和冷却降温速率对其杨氏模量、拉伸强度和断裂伸长率均有影响,经过热定型处理,复合纤维内部MWCNTs的取向程度明显提高。280℃热定型、1.5℃/min冷却纤维的拉伸强度达384MPa,杨氏模量为0.62GPa,断裂伸长率28%,拉伸强度和杨氏模量分别较130℃热定型纤维提高了147%和19%,获得了优化复合纤维性能的最佳工艺条件。      

Microstructure and mechanical properties of nickel based superalloy IN718 produced by rapid prototyping with electron beam melting (EBM)

Abstract

A nickel alloy of a composition similar to that of the nickel based superalloy Inconel alloy 718 (IN718) was produced with the electron beam melting (EBM) process developed by Arcam AB. The microstructures of the as processed and heat treated material are similar to that of conventionally produced IN718, except that the EBM material showed some porosity and the δ phase did not dissolve during the solution heat treatment because the temperature of 1000°C apparently was too low. Mechanical testing of the layer structured material, parallel and perpendicular to the built layers, revealed sufficient strength in both directions. However, it showed only limited elongation when tested perpendicular to the built layers due to local agglomerations of pores. Otherwise, data for the hardness, Young’s modulus, 0·2% yield tensile strength and ultimate tensile strength match those recommended for IN718.